Herbs for health

Herbs don’t just taste good, they can offer health benefits too. Stock up your cupboards with these herbs and get cooking with our recipes.

Herbs don’t just taste good, they can offer health benefits too. Stock up your cupboards with these herbs and get cooking with our recipes.

Parsley

Parsley is rich in vitamin C, which helps support the immune system and aids wound healing.

A single 30g serving provides more than half of the daily recommended amount of this vitamin.

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It’s also a good source of the plant pigment beta-carotene, which the body converts to vitamin A.

Heart friendly

Use herbs to flavour your food instead of salt and you can reduce your blood pressure, lessening your risk of heart attacks.

Vitamins C and A, as well as beta-carotene, all act as antioxidants, protecting the body’s cells from damage from harmful molecules called free radicals.

Free radicals are involved in a whole range of diseases, from heart disease to cancer.

Polyphenols are even better antioxidants than vitamins - and parsley is packed with polyphenols.

Portuguese fish bake (serves 2)

Ingredients

2 fillets of white fish, eg tilapia

400g tin chopped tomatoes

50g olives

1 onion, chopped

4 tablespoons (tbsp) fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 teaspoon (tsp) olive oil, plus extra for brushing

half tsp sugar

To cook

Preheat the oven to 200°C / 180°C fan / gas mark 6.

Heat the oil in an ovenproof pan and fry the onion and garlic for 2 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, sugar and two thirds of the chopped parsley.

Brush the top of the fish with a little oil and lay on the sauce.

Bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes.

Sprinkle with a little more chopped parsley and serve with pasta and a salad.

Watercress

Watercress packs a peppery punch, and a nutritional one too.

Gram for gram, it’s richer in vitamin C than oranges, and higher in iron than spinach. It’s also packed with beta-carotene, which the body converts to vitamin A for healthy skin and eyes.

The deep green leaves are also fantastic sources of phytochemicals (plant chemicals) called lutein and zeaxanthin, which can protect against an eye condition called age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

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Watercress could even cut your cancer risk - a study from the University of Ulster found that watercress reduces the DNA damage that can cause cells to become cancerous.

Mushroom and watercress omelette (serves 2)

Ingredients

4 eggs, beaten

80g mushrooms, sliced

80g watercress, finely chopped

2 tbsp grated cheese

1 garlic clove, crushed

Spray or 1 tsp olive oil

To cook

Spray a non-stick frying pan with olive oil and fry the mushrooms with the garlic for 2 to 3 minutes.

In a bowl, beat four eggs and add half of the watercress, then pour into the pan.

Cook until the base is set.

Now add the other half of the watercress and the cheese to the pan.

When the top of the omelette is lightly set, fold in half, cut into two and serve with a large green salad.

Oregano

Oregano contains the phytochemicals thymol and carvacrol, which are powerful antifungal agents.

One study demonstrated that carvacrol inhibited the growth of the fungus Candida albicans better than a common antifungal medication. Candida albicans is the fungus that causes thrush.

Australian researchers have found oregano oil has a strong antibacterial action against a range of bugs including those responsible for E.coli, salmonella and the common cold.

Oregano is also an antioxidant that can prevent frying oil from being damaged by high heat and producing free radicals which can cause damage to cells.

Oregano is rich in vitamin K, which is needed for blood clotting and healthy bones.

Hearty bean and oregano soup (serves 2)

Ingredients

1 onion, diced

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 carrot, diced

1 stick celery, diced

1 small leek, sliced

400g tin cannellini beans, drained

600ml vegetable or chicken stock

Spray or 1 tsp olive oil

1 bay leaf

1 tbsp fresh oregano

1 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley

To cook

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Spray a saucepan with the olive oil.

Gently fry the all the vegetables and garlic for 10 minutes until softened, but not browned.

Add the stock, bay leaf and oregano.

Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the cannellini beans to the soup and simmer for another 5 minutes.

Garnish with parsley and serve with crusty wholemeal bread.

Rosemary

The pine-like needles of rosemary could protect your brain from strokes and neurological diseases including Alzheimer's.

It may even help slow the brain-ageing process itself, according to scientists at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research in the US and Japan’s Iwake University.

Its brain-protecting effect is thought to be down to a phytochemical called carnosic acid, which protects the brain from free radical damage.

Rosemary also contains a phytochemical called beta-caryophyllin.

A recent Swiss-German study found this chemical could prevent inflammation in the body, which contributes to conditions as diverse as hardening of the arteries and Crohn’s disease.

Sticky rosemary lamb (serves 2)

Ingredients

2 lamb chops or leg steaks

1 tsp redcurrant jelly

1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 tsp olive oil

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

To cook

Melt the redcurrant jelly in a bowl in the microwave. This takes about 10 seconds, depending on the power of the microwave.

Add the rosemary, garlic, olive oil and balsamic vinegar to the jelly. Beat or whisk the ingredients to form a marinade.

Place the lamb in a dish and pour over the marinade; leave flavours to develop for at least 30 minutes.

Cook the lamb under a medium hot grill for 5 to 6 minutes each side, depending on the thickness of the meat and how rare you like it done.

Serve with boiled new potatoes, green beans and broccoli.

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Thyme

Thyme's active ingredients have long been used in herbal medicine to treat chest complaints, especially a compound called thymol - and now the science to prove this is catching up.

Modern research is concentrating on thymol's antiseptic and antibacterial properties as well as its high antioxidant activity in protecting the fats in cell membranes.

One study on rats found that supplementing their diets with thyme could help slow brain ageing.

The thyme-fed rats had a higher percentage of polyunsaturated fats in their brain cells, which are vital for enabling brain cells to communicate with one another.

Thyme also contains antioxidants called flavonoids that can help reduce your risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease and stroke.

Herby topped chicken breasts (serves 2)

Ingredients

2 skinless boneless chicken breasts

1 slice of wholemeal bread

1 shallot, chopped

2 tsp of fresh thyme leaves, chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 tsp olive oil

To cook

Preheat oven to 180°C/ 160°C fan / gas mark 4.

Put the wholemeal bread into a food processor and pulse until you have breadcrumbs.

Heat the olive oil and gently fry the shallot and garlic until softened.

Remove the pan from the heat, then add the breadcrumbs and thyme to the shallot mix and stir until combined.

Place two chicken breasts in a baking dish, press the crumbs onto the chicken and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve with steamed vegetables and boiled potatoes.

Garlic

This pungent smaller relative of the onion mounts a multi-pronged attack on your heart disease risk.

Garlic has also been clinically proven to help keep the arteries clear of cholesterol, as well as making the blood less ‘sticky’ and likely to form dangerous clots.

Garlic has powerful antibiotic properties, and its use in traditional medicine was a lifesaver before the discovery of penicillin. Lab tests from the University of East London suggest that allicin can kill MRSA hospital superbugs.

Garlic could also protect us from cancer – population studies show that people eating plenty of garlic have lower rates of the disease.

Garlic roasted winter vegetables (serves 2)

Great as an accompaniment for roasts and grilled meat or chicken.

Ingredients

half a small swede

1 parsnip

2 carrots

4 shallots

half a garlic bulb (about five cloves)

2 tsp olive oil

To cook

Preheat oven to 180°C/ 160°C fan / gas mark 4.

Peel the vegetables and chop into 2cm chunks.

In a bowl, add the olive oil to the vegetables and stir to coat.

Place vegetables on a baking tray with the halved garlic bulb and cook until tender (about 20 minutes).

To serve, pull each clove out of the bulb. Split the skin, then squeeze out the soft garlic onto the vegetables.

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